Sky TV on-demand movie rentals to take on Lovefilm and Netflix, prices revealed

The Gadget Show  Tuesday 17 July 2012

Today sees the launch of Now TV – a new on-demand movie rental service to take on rivals Lovefilm and Netflix. Launching on PC, Mac, and some Android smartphones, Now TV will offer access to 600 films and 11 channels, with more to come in future on a monthly subscription, or on pay and play basis. More details on the pricing and packages this way. 



Sky’s big strategy is to take on the growing streaming movie market, with a service it hopes will be just as competitive, as the hunger for digital on-demand content continues to outgrow physical DVDs.

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A monthly subscription of £15 per month will give users unlimited access to Now TV content, or let users watch films for anything from 99 pence to £3.49.

As reported by The Guardian, the service has rolled out just in time to make way for a summer of sport, in a plan that will see lots of cricket, rugby and the beginning of the new Premier League football from its Sky Sports channels appear before the year’s end.

Sky1 and Sky Atlantic are two more confirmed channels, offering entertainment from the UK, and some of the best television series from the US.

The service will offer customers the chance to enjoy Sky content, without the lengthy commitment. BskyB managing director of sales and marketing calls it a “no contract way of delivering Sky content they want in a dip in and dip out way.”

BSkyB also hopes to offer the service on PS3 and Xbox 360 consoles, and YouView.

How successful the service stacks up against the likes of Lovefilm remains to be seen. Lovefilm subscriptions start as low as £4.99 per month, rising to £11.22 per month with Xbox 360, PS3 and Wii access.

Meanwhile Netflix costs just £5.99 per month for unlimited films & TV episodes streamed to your TV or computer. 


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